So just get comfortable,
Feeling your feet on the ground,
Feeling your weight supported in the chair.
You can do what you like with your hands,
But I do like palms facing upwards.
Noticing how your breath's feeling.
Feeling a little bit sped up from that exercise we just did.
Noticing any sensations in the body without judgement.
Just noticing.
I'm going to do my favourite fear release meditation exercise,
Which helpfully is autumnal themed.
So I want you to imagine there's stairs going downwards in front of you.
And I'm going to count down 10 to 1.
And with every decreasing number,
I want you to feel like you're going down stairs,
And you're going deeper and deeper into relaxation.
But staying alert and awake.
5.
.
.
4.
.
.
3.
.
.
2.
.
.
1.
.
.
I want you to imagine that you're standing in a beautiful field.
You can see grass and the blue sky.
A bright sunny day.
Feeling the grass underneath your feet.
You hear buzzing of bees and birdsong.
Maybe seeing some butterflies float past.
Take a look around.
This is a very safe,
Lovely environment.
Maybe you see wildflowers growing.
Build the image and experience as much as possible in your mind's eye.
I want you to notice in the distance there's a beautiful grove of trees.
I want you to just walk over towards it.
There's a lovely woodland.
Very welcoming and inviting.
And you see as you approach that the tree nearest to you is a really big,
Really old oak tree.
It's got a very thick trunk.
Very large branches.
Looks stately and wise.
Go up towards the tree.
I'm going to ask it for some help.
I have feelings of fear,
Of worry.
This tree has stood here for hundreds of years and has seen so many things.
It knows just what to do.
I'm going to take a moment to feel the trunk of the tree.
Placing your hand upon it.
How does that feel to you?
I'm looking up at its branches.
Looking at the distinctive oak leaf shape of the leaves.
Maybe there's acorns in the tree.
Maybe there's a squirrel eating some acorns in the tree.
It doesn't allow whatever arises for you.
The oak tree invites you to mentally draw an image of each fear you have onto its leaves.
Imagine you're bringing an oak leaf close.
You can draw an image or maybe write down a phrase upon it of the fear you're experiencing.
When you finish one,
Take another.
It can be something really huge,
Fear of dying,
Fear of failure.
It can be something very small.
Whatever it is,
Just put it down onto the leaf and keep going.
Keep thinking of all the different things that concern you,
That worry you.
It can be about your personal life,
Your health.
Or it can be something much wider,
About the world.
Whatever it is,
It's perfect,
Just as it is.
Just keep bringing more things to mind,
Putting them on the leaf and then moving to the next one.
Keep going,
I know you have more that can go down.
When you think you're finished,
I want you to imagine that you're stepping a few steps away from the oak tree.
You're looking up and you're seeing all the vivid images of what you've put onto the tree.
The tree thanks you for sharing that.
It says it's now going to transmute that energy,
That fear energy.
It can release it.
You're watching the tree as all these green leaves begin to change colour.
Turning oranges,
Reds,
Yellows and then browns.
Getting crispier,
Drier,
Until you see the leaves start to fall from the tree.
As you see them fall,
You're feeling a bit lighter.
These fears don't have any hold on you.
You watch all the leaves fall off the tree,
Until the tree is bare in branches and there's a pile of autumnal leaves on the ground.
You keep watching as those leaves begin to disintegrate,
Become skeletal,
Turn to mulch.
Gradually they melt into the ground,
Becoming nutrition for the tree.
So you've watched all the leaves that you wrote things down,
They disintegrated and they've returned back to the earth,
To source.
The tree says thank you,
Thank you for this energy that you've given me.
The tree confirms these fears are just thoughts.
These thoughts do not need to have any control over you ever again.
These thoughts are now transmuted,
Sent back to Mother Earth.
I want you to thank the tree for its help.
I want you to go back towards the field,
The meadow,
Feeling lighter,
Freer,
To enjoy this newfound freedom.
I want you to know that any time you're feeling overwhelmed,
Afraid,
Worried,
You can come back to this meditation,
This exercise,
And the wise oak tree can assist you again.
I'll take one more look at the scene you're at.
You're going to walk towards,
Back towards those stairs.
And with every increasing number,
You become more alert,
More awake,
More back in the room.
Upwards,
5,
6,
7,
8,
Moving your fingers,
10,
Wide awake,
Back in the room.
Take a minute of a deep stretch,
A big breath,
Coming back into the body.
Thank you for practicing with me today.
Take care of yourself.
Namaste.
